Many animals have a preference for drinking flowing water. Flowing water may provide a number of advantages, including improved taste and quality. Flowing water also typically has more dissolved oxygen, which can make the water taste better as well as potentially provide health benefits. For example, one health benefit of flowing water is that it may encourage animals to drink more liquid. Increased water intake can help reduce problems with the animal's kidneys or urinary tract. In addition to these benefits, running water is interesting and entertaining to many animals.
Many household pet owners have recognized that their pets are drawn towards running water. Many dogs like to drink from hoses, streams, or water flowing along a curb. Cats often jump on counters and sinks in order to drink from a running or leaking faucet. Some pet owners even deliberately accommodate such behavior, for example, by letting a hose or faucet drip.
However, many animals do not have access to a source of running water. Animals may engage in undesirable behavior in search of running water, such as jumping on counters or in bath tubs. Owners who do provide running water for their animals may incur significant expense by leaving faucets or hoses running.
Pet fountains that provide running water to pets have been developed in order to help alleviate some of these problems. For example, Veterinary Ventures, Inc., of Reno, Nev., offers a variety of pet fountains, such as the Drinkwell® and Drinkwell® Big Dog. Such fountains typically include a water reservoir, an elevated spout that dispenses water, and a bowl into which the water is dispensed and from which the animal can drink. Some fountains provide a stream of free falling water, which can help stimulate animals' interest in the fountain as well as enhance water oxygenation.
However, prior fountains can have some drawbacks. For example, particularly if the owner does not adequately maintain the fountain, the fountain can accumulate debris such as hair and food. Such debris can impair water circulation in the fountain, for example, by clogging an intake or outtake of a pump, or reducing water quality. If the water circulation is sufficiently impaired, a water circulation device may be damaged. In addition, some prior fountains contain pumps having at least portions that should not be in contact with water, potentially making cleaning of the fountain more difficult.
If fountains are not properly maintained, the benefits of animal watering fountains can be reduced or even reversed. However, typical fountains often have a large number of parts that need to be removed and reassembled during routine maintenance of the fountain. For example, an upper water dispensing portion is typically removable from a lower bowl portion. Reassembling this structure can be difficult for some users. Further, the water circulation device of such fountains is often not easily accessible by the user, and thus not adequately cleaned.
Although a free falling stream of water may be particularly interesting to animals, and may enhance aeration of the water, the splashing produced by such a stream can produce a level of noise objectionable to some users. In addition, the splashing can result in water landing outside the fountain, potentially making a mess or requiring the owner to refill the fountain more frequently.
Some prior fountains contain water reservoirs which can be difficult to carry and use. For example, such reservoirs may be plastic cylinders, which may become slippery when wet. In addition, many reservoirs have a lid having a spout through which water is transferred to the fountain. The reservoir is typically filled, the cap is screwed on, and then the reservoir is inverted onto the fountain. If the reservoir is not inverted properly, water may spill from the reservoir outside of the fountain.
Another potential disadvantage of prior fountains is their electric cords. Such cords are typically permanently attached to the pump, and can be difficult to position in a convenient fashion. Because of its use with water, the voltage carried by the cord can also be a concern.
In order to further improve the quality of the water provided to animals drinking from the pet fountains, some prior fountains are designed to accept filters. Such filters typically contain a quantity of an impurity-absorbing material, such as activated carbon. However, such material can have a tendency to settle into the bottom portion of the filter, reducing the effectiveness of filter, as water that circulates through other portions of the filter does not contact the absorbing material.